


Blackwork

by darkestbliss



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Non-Magical, Angst, Falling In Love, Fluff, M/M, Past Child Abuse, Piercings, Smut, Swearing, Tattoos, fibromyalgia
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-27
Updated: 2017-08-15
Packaged: 2018-09-20 07:19:38
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9480857
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/darkestbliss/pseuds/darkestbliss
Summary: Sirius and the Potters have just opened their own tattoo and piercing shop. A run-down café sits just up the high street from The Staggered Canine, and it is there that Sirius first finds one Remus Lupin.





	1. Chapter 1

The café just down the road from The Staggered Canine was a dimly lit, hole-in-the-wall sort of a place with mismatched chairs and tables, though it served the best fry-up in NW5, or so Sirius was told by the Polish man who owned the off-license next door to their shop. When he walked in the first time, it was a hot mid-summer day without a cloud in the sky and temperatures creeping into the low 30s. It had been a long morning of fixing up the shop and Sirius was looking forward to a nice sit down and a full English to restore his lost energy.

 

Just one woman was working at the counter, her curly red hair swept into a ponytail at the back of her head. She wore a patched apron and smiled cheerfully as Sirius approached. “Hiya dear!” she greeted, taking out a pen and pad of paper. “What can I get you?”

 

“Word on the street is the full English here is the best in town,” Sirius replied, leaning on the counter and giving the woman a wink.

 

“Oh that’d be Szymon! Always sending the newcomers round here! Well, I don’t mean to brag, but my husband does make a mean fried egg! And we make our own beans, as well.”

 

“Sounds delicious,” said Sirius. “I’ll have that and a filter coffee, please. No milk.”

 

“Coming right up!” replied the woman, scribbling some notes down on her paper. “Go give that to your father, dearie,” she said.

 

“Pardon?”

 

Suddenly, a small boy of about 11 or 12 dashed out from behind the counter, note clutched in his hand. His hair was a mess of red and he wore a playful smile on his face. “Hiya!” he said. “I’m Charlie!”

 

Laughing, Sirius knelt down and held out his hand for the boy to shake. “Hi Charlie! I’m Sirius.”

 

“Charles,” said the woman. “The order?”

 

“Right! Sorry, Mum!” And with that, the boy disappeared again.

 

“Sorry about that, he’s always wanting to help with the orders,” said the woman with a laugh. “That’ll be £6.50 please, love.”

 

Sirius pulled a wadded fiver from his pocket and a few coins, handing them to the woman over the counter. He turned to look around at the relatively empty café. “Not many in today?”

 

“No, unfortunately not,” replied the woman. “Too hot, I reckon. We should pick back up in the autumn. Here’s your change, darling. You can go ahead and take a seat, I’ll bring your coffee and food out to you.”

 

“Cheers!”

 

Sirius’ attention was drawn to a small round table in the corner of the café. He sat and made himself comfortable, stretching out his sore and tired muscles. Just as another red headed boy appeared near the counter—this one a bit younger and with a much sterner expression on his face—the woman bustled out from where the first boy had disappeared to, cup of coffee in one hand and steaming plate of toast, bacon, sausages, egg, tomatoes, mushrooms, beans, and black pudding in the other. The sound of Sirius’ growling stomach could probably be heard from halfway across London

 

“This looks incredible!”

 

“It is delicious, if I do say so myself!”

 

“So do you and your husband own this place?” Sirius asked just before tucking in.

 

The woman nodded. “We do. Oh! I didn’t introduce myself! I’m Molly Weasley.”

 

“Sirius Black,” replied Sirius, reaching out with his left hand to shake Molly’s. “Nice to meet you. Reckon you’ll be seeing a lot of me in the future. Christ, these eggs are good.”

 

Molly laughed good-naturedly. “I wouldn’t be wrong in assuming you’re working at that new tattoo and piercing shop just down the way, would I?” she asked, her eyes raking over Sirius’ appearance.

 

Sirius nodded, smiling widely. “What gave it away?” he asked. “The 25 millimetre holes in my ears or the lovely lady on my arm?”

 

“Actually it was your shirt,” said Molly, nodding toward Sirius’ tee.

 

Looking down, Sirius chuckled as he remembered what he was wearing. The shirts with their logo had just come in the day before and he’d been more than a little bit excited that morning to get to wear it. 

 

“We’ve loved seeing the progress on the shop! When will you be open for business?”

 

“Officially opening this Saturday. Been a long time coming, we’re quite chuffed with it.”

 

“As you should be!” A crash came from the kitchens, followed by manic laughter and a child crying. Molly rolled her eyes. “That’ll be the children causing a mess again. I’ll talk to you later, Sirius. Have a lovely day!”

 

Sirius waved and mumbled a ‘goodbye’ through a mouthful of bread, beans, and egg. Swallowing, he sipped his coffee and laughed as yet another red haired boy came running out—the oldest yet—followed quickly by two very giddy and mischievous twins. 

 

“Out of the café!” Molly yelled from afar, and the children giggled some more before disappearing. 

 

It seemed the Weasleys were a large family; Sirius had already seen five boys including the twins. By the next day, he’d met the youngest and only girl, Ginny. And on the opening day of The Staggered Canine, he met the final two Weasleys: head chef himself, Arthur Weasley and youngest son, Ronald. As Sirius sat at his now designated corner table and tucked into his lunch—today it was a jacket potato with cheese and salad—with his mobile phone out in front of him, he cracked his neck in an attempt to work out the kinks. To celebrate opening day, he and James had been doing small flash designs at discount prices for the first half of the day and Lily had been doing all piercings for £25. It was quite a lot of tattooing for such a short amount of time, and he was relieved for an hour’s break before he had to go back to the shop and get on with some consultation appointments.

 

It was busier than usual—probably coinciding with the fact that it was the weekend. Molly was busy with taking orders and running tables, meaning Sirius wasn’t able to have his usual chat he’d had with her the previous few days. Instead, he took his time looking more properly around the café, specifically the people inside it.

 

In the centre were a group of uni-aged girls all crowded around a small table with a large plate of cheesy chips in the middle. They occasionally all leant forward, whispering, only to fall back to their seats in high-pitched shrieks and giggles. It warmed Sirius’ heart.

 

Two constructions workers were sat by the window, their faces streaked with sweat and dust. One spoke loudly into his mobile with a thick Cockney accent whilst the other chugged from a Lucozade bottle. Their plates had been cleared and it looked like they were enjoying the last few moments inside the cool café before returning to the hard work outside.

 

As Sirius let his eyes gaze over the other café patrons, his gaze landed on a tall lanky form sat just across from him. The man was bent over his bowl of soup, tawny curls awry over his forehead and blocking his face from Sirius’ view. Sirius quickly stared back down at his lunch, trying not to be caught gazing at the eccentric way the man’s bone thin hands held his spoon, like it was the most delicate and precious thing he’d ever had. He slowly continued to eat, slyly sneaking quick glances at the man. He locked eyes on the man once more, holding his breath as the man seemed to sense someone looking his way. When brown eyes glanced up and focused on his, he offered a slight smile to the man, only to have the other man quickly look down again, curls falling over him once more. Disappointed, Sirius returned to his lunch for a few more minutes before hastily standing up, giving a small wave to Molly, and exiting the café without even so much as another glance at the other man.

 

On his way back to The Staggered Canine he drew a cigarette from the box in his trouser pocket. Lighting up, he let the smoke fill his lungs before exhaling, allowing the last bit of tension he still felt to leave his body. The rest of the day would be much more relaxed, and hopefully he wouldn’t have to think about the peculiar man in the café for a while.

 

“Padfoot!” came a cry from one Harry Potter as he walked through the door of the tattoo shop.

 

“Hey mini Prongs!” Sirius replied, kneeling down and catching his five year old godson in his arms as he ran towards him. “Have you been helping your old man with some tattoos?”

 

“We’ve been drawing!” Harry declared excitedly, holding up a messy drawing of three figures, one with red hair and the other two with glasses and wildly untamed black hair and dark skin.

 

“Wow, you made James look even better than he does in real life!” exclaimed Sirius, standing up and throwing a wink at his best friend who was crouched over a drawing behind the counter.

 

“Sod off,” came James’ mumbled reply. 

 

“Oi, language!” scolded Lily, walking in from the back of the shop with a client right in front of her. She stuck her split tongue out at her husband who was sat hiding behind his drawing like a naughty child. “How was lunch, Sirius?”

 

“Brilliant as always. The Weasleys are fu— I mean fudging fantastic!” Lily gave him an appreciative look. “Saw an interesting bloke that I didn’t see earlier this week.”

 

“Weird, he seem like a regular?” asked James.

 

“Not sure,” replied Sirius. He paused. “He was cute though.”

 

Lily rolled her eyes as she waved goodbye to her client. “Leave it to Padfoot to immediately start flirting with the locals less than a week after moving to the area.”

 

“Leave me alone,” Sirius grumbled. “I wasn’t even flirting! Just admiring from a distance.”

 

“Quit your whining and get your arse over here,” said James. “These roses are giving me a right hell of a time.”

 

“Language!”

 

Shaking his head, Sirius walked over to the drawing table where James was sat, now with Harry attempting to clamber onto his lap. Sirius scooped the squirming boy into his arms, spinning around once before sitting him back down into his father’s lap. 

 

“Again, Sirius! Again!”

 

“Not now, little one,” said Sirius. “I have to help your papa.”

 

Pouting good-naturedly, Harry moved to sit on the sofa, pulling a stuffed owl he’d had since he was six months old out of a bag and settling down with it and some paper and crayons that Lily had left out for him. Most days the young boy would stay with a sitter but the Potters had yet to find someone permanently for the summer near their new home in Camden Town. Luckily, Harry enjoyed sitting in the shop and keeping to himself; he’d practically been raised in a tattoo shop.

 

The rest of the afternoon and early evening passed by quickly. Sirius spent most of it in consultations or sketching up initial ideas and designs. The Potters left just before dinner time, leaving Sirius on his own. He ended up getting lost in drawing, and didn’t lock up the shop until the sun had begun to set. On his way back up the high street for his walk home to Belsize Park, he peered through the window of the Weasley’s café, looking to throw a wave to Molly who was usually there quite late. Instead, he found the café empty save for one person—the man with the light brown curls from earlier that day. Sirius found himself holding his breath as he watched the man slowly move around the café, moving tables and cleaning surfaces. He had earphones in, and occasionally appeared to be humming. When he finally looked up at the window where Sirius had been stood, the tattoo artist had already left, walking quickly towards his flat in the still warm setting sun.


	2. Chapter 2

Every morning Sirius popped into the Weasley’s café for a tea to takeaway before heading into work. It was a Monday, and as he added milk and gave it a stir, he quickly struck up a conversation with Arthur as he was brewing lattes for the couple behind Sirius.

 

“I was walking round the other week and saw a bloke in here cleaning, was just wondering who it was.”

 

“Oh!” said Arthur, smiling brightly. “That’s Remus Lupin! Wonderful lad, hardest worker I’ve ever met. He’s here pretty much every day but has been coming down ill quite a bit these past few weeks. Why do you ask?”

 

“Was just curious, I hadn’t seen him before!” replied Sirius. 

 

Arthur gave him a funny look, but carried on making the coffees anyway whilst Sirius quickly said hello to the Weasley twins, Fred and George. Fred—or was it George—stood on his tiptoes to whisper something in Sirius’ ear.

 

“We put a fake spider in the sugar. Mum is gonna flip!”

 

Two seconds later and there was screeching from the kitchens. Arthur looked up quickly, glaring at the twins as they screeched in delight, dashing out of reach and through a corridor. Sirius just chuckled, shaking his head and heading out of the café with a last wave to Arthur.

 

It was another hot day in London; a group of giggling children pushed past Sirius in shorts with melting 99 Flakes clutched in their hands. When he walked into The Staggered Canine, Lily was sat behind the desk, fanning herself with a handful of papers.

 

“Bloody hot in here today,” she complained as Sirius sat down beside her, taking a look at his timetable for the day. “James has got the fans blasting in the back.”

 

Sure enough, the running of a fan could just be heard over the buzzing of a tattoo machine. “Thank god,” said Sirius. “Don’t know how I could tattoo in this heat.” He moved back to his station to set up, throwing a wave to James who was crouched over a client. “Alright, mate!”

 

“Hey, Pads. What have you got on today?”

 

“Full colour roses on the ribs,” he replied as he washed his hands and began to cellophane the chairs. “Should be here in about 20 minutes.”

 

“Painful start to a Monday,” said James with a chuckle, sitting up for a second to smile at Sirius. 

 

“Tell me about it. Glad it’s not me.” 

 

Sirius continued to set up for his first tattoo of the day, setting aside ink and kitchen roll. About a quarter of an hour passed before he heard the bell at the top of the door ring out and the sound of Lily’s bright greeting. He grabbed his stencil and headed to the front of the shop where Lily was going through a playlist on Spotify and his client, Dorcas, was sat waiting.

 

“Hiya, Dorcas,” said Sirius in greeting. He held up the stencil. “You ready?”

 

“Oh my god!” she exclaimed. “Oh it’s beautiful, I’m so excited!”

 

“Great, let’s get started.”

 

Sirius was relieved to see that Dorcas actually had quite a few tattoos; she’d been fully covered at her consultation, which led Sirius to believe she wouldn’t be able to sit through a four and a half hour tattoo on the ribs. When she took off her blouse, a full colour portrait was revealed on her left side, and Sirius felt a rush of relief go through him.

 

“Oh thank god,” he said with a chuckle. Dorcas threw her head back and laughed. “I know it’s bad to say but I fucking hate doing ribs on people for the first time.”

 

“Don’t worry,” said Dorcas. “I’ve had a hearty breakfast and a good few days of mental preparation. I’m ready.”

 

“Let’s get this show on the road then,” replied Sirius with a large smile as he snapped on his gloves.

 

About halfway through Dorcas’ tattoo they took a smoking break. She’d sat perfectly still for the better of two hours, to Sirius’ astonishment. He’d never had such a good client. 

 

“So how’d you find us?” he asked as they sat on the front steps of the shop.

 

“One of my best mates works in the area. The artist I’ve been seeing since I was 18 has just moved away to Australia, so I was looking for someone new. Heard about the new shop and looked up your portfolio online and immediately knew it was fate.”

 

“That’s brilliant,” said Sirius, laughing. “Glad you found us.” He stubbed out his cigarette and stretched out, watching as people passed by on the street. He arched his head, trying to see the Weasley’s café from where they were sat. His sight was blocked by crates of fruit and veg. 

 

After another two and a half hours of colour, Sirius was waving Dorcas out the front of the shop with promises of a consultation for a calf piece later in the year. The remainder of the evening was full of a selection of small pieces, and Sirius found himself finishing the day quite early. 

 

“You mind picking Haz up from the sitters’?” asked Lily.

 

“Of course,” said Sirius. “I’ll take him to the café for some chips.”

 

“Oi! Stop feeding my kid junk!” James proclaimed from where he was crouched over his client.

 

“Should’ve thought of that before making me his godfather, then,” said Sirius with a wink and wiggle of his hips. He grabbed his wallet and made a salute to Lily as he walked out of the shop, cracking his neck and taking a deep breath as he did so. 

 

Harry’s sitter lived in a small garden flat just off the high road, less than a five minute’s walk from The Staggered Canine. Angelina Johnson was about to leave London for her first year of uni after living in the area with her mum and dad her entire life; Harry had taken a keen liking to the Johnsons in the few weeks he’d been staying with them. He especially enjoyed playing football with Angelina in the garden whenever Harry wasn’t distracted by the patch of dirt where her mum planted fruits and vegetables. 

 

The sound of small thumping feet could be heard shortly after Sirius knocked on the front door. It swung open, revealing a chuckling Angelina and a bright-eyed Harry.

 

“Hiya, Sirius,” greeted Angelina.

 

“Padfoot!” screamed Harry. 

 

“Hi, Angelina. Hello, Haz.” Sirius bent down and ruffled his godson’s wild hair. “Did you have a good day?”

 

“Yes!” exclaimed the five year old. “We went to the park and I rolled down the hill!”

 

“I can tell,” giggled Sirius, picking a piece of grass from Harry’s hair. “I trust he behaved well?” he asked, peering over to Angelina. The young girl’s look told him all he needed to know, and he let out a bark of a laugh. “Like father like son. Always up to no good.”

 

“Swear he took half of Hampstead Heath with him back into the flat.” Angelina knelt down and tapped the boy’s nose. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Harry. It’ll be Friday so maybe we can go to the zoo or something!”

 

“I want to see a dragon!”

 

“There are Komodo dragons,” said Sirius.

 

“Do they breathe fire?!” asked Harry excitedly.

 

“We’ll have to see,” said Angelina with a wink. She waved goodbye and closed the door as Harry and Sirius made their way up the steps and onto the street.

 

Harry excitedly reached for Sirius’ hand as they walked together towards the Weasley’s café. “Can we paint when we get home?!” he asked.

 

“The first thing you’re getting when we get home is a bath, little Prongs.”

 

Harry pouted.

 

“We can paint after, though.”

 

A smile spread across the boy’s face, and Sirius stepped aside to let him go into the café first. He looked around at the mostly empty space, noting the two eldest Weasley’s sat at a table playing cards. He walked up to the counter and greeted Molly with a smile.

 

“Hiya, Sirius!” she said. “Hello, Harry.”

 

“Is Ron here?!” Harry asked, rather loudly. Ron was the same age as Harry, and the two had gotten along great the few times they’d met. Sirius knew he’d have to arrange a proper playdate for the two young boys, at some point.

 

“Sorry, love, Ron is out today! I’ll tell him you’ve stopped by, though! I know he’s itching to see you again.” Molly looked up to Sirius with a smile. “What’ll it be then, Sirius?” 

 

“Cheesy chips for the sprog and a latte for me.” He passed over a handful of coins.

 

“Coming right up! Take a seat and we’ll bring it right out,” replied Molly.

 

At the table, Harry rocked back and forth impatiently, his eyes dancing wildly with mischief. Sirius chuckled, ruffling his hair so that it covered his eyes and knocked his round glasses sideways.

 

“Cheesy chips,” came a voice from behind them. Sirius glanced up as a long and pale arm placed a greasy plate of chips and cheddar between them, followed closely by a steaming cup of coffee.

 

Harry immediately tucked in, shovelling the food into his mouth like it was his last meal. Meanwhile, Sirius was staring up at the person who’d placed the food on their table. It was Remus, the man Sirius had asked Arthur about earlier in the day. “Hi,” said Sirius, a bit out of breath. “I mean… Fu… Shoot. Cheers, I mean.” He glanced over at Harry, who was paying him no attention. 

 

Remus let out a sharp but shy chuckle. “Close one,” he said quietly. “You must be Sirius. Molly and Arthur told me about you. I’m Remus.”

 

“Nice to meet you,” replied Sirius. “I think I saw you here before, my first week.”

 

“Yeah, yeah,” said Remus, shifting his weight and quickly looking around the café. “I was quite ill that day. I apologise if I was acting kind of weird.”

 

“You’ve got funny tattoos on your arms!” Harry suddenly blurted out. Sirius cursed beneath his breath as Remus looked down at his arms, which were covered in long white scars.

 

“Harry!” Sirius scolded.

 

“It’s okay,” said Remus with a gentle smile. He honestly didn’t look too upset, to Sirius’ shock. “Happens all the time. I tell people I was attacked by a wolf.” He gave Harry a wink and the boy shrieked happily, clapping his hands. “I should get back to work. I’ll see you around?”

 

“Yeah,” said Sirius, a little breathless. He watched as Remus walked back into the kitchens, the door swinging shut behind him.

 

“Padfoot and Moony, sittin’ in a tree,” Harry sung quietly to himself, giggling when his godfather shot him a glare.

 

“Eat your chips, kid.” He paused. “Wait… Moony?”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this has taken so long to post! I've been on a Drarry kick these last couple of months, and even though I've had most of this chapter done for a while, it's taken me a bit to wrap it up nicely. Hopefully the next break won't be so long. Feedback would be much appreciated! xx

From that 45 second conversation onwards, Sirius could not get Remus out of his head. At home later that evening, with Harry sat in the kitchen slathering paint all over his toy dragon, Sirius stared out at the terrace with thoughts of the strange, scarred man clouding his brain. 

 

“Padfoot!” Harry exclaimed, tugging on Sirius’ trouser leg. He looked down at the boy, who was covered in washable (thank god for that!) paint. “Paint with me!”

 

Sirius blinked, looking down at the young boy and shaking his head. “You’re a mess, little Prongs. Your mum isn’t going to want you all covered in paint!”

 

“I like painting!” Harry exclaimed, running his fingers through some of the green paint he had going down his left arm.

 

“Come on,” said Sirius, bending down to lift the boy up. “Let’s get you cleaned up before Lily gets me in trouble.”

 

The Potters arrived just ten minutes later as Sirius was ruffling Harry’s messy black hair dry and dressing him in his favourite lion pyjamas. As they knocked, Harry leapt and bolted through the flat to open up the door.

 

“Mummy! Daddy!”

 

Lily bent down to scoop up her son. “Hello my darling. Did you have a good day?” She stood up and stepped to the side to let James in, nodding at Sirius who had just entered the hallway from the reception.

 

“I went to the park! And then Padfoot took me to see Moony and get some chips!”

 

“Moony?” asked James, his eyebrow raising.

 

Sirius shrugged and rolled his eyes. “Harry insists that’s what the man who works at the café is called. His name is Remus.”

 

“He has funny tattoos and was attacked by a werewolf,” Harry said, his eyes going dramatically wide. “And werewolves howl at the moon! So his name is Moony!”

 

Laughing, James stepped forward and kissed Harry’s forehead. “I like your logic, kid.”

 

“And Padfoot likes Moony!”

 

“Harry!” Sirius yelped, turning around to the kitchen to avoid the knowing look Lily immediately gave him.

 

“Oh so it’s _that_ guy from the café, huh?” she teased, readjusting Harry in her arms and following Sirius into the kitchen.

 

“Maybe,” Sirius grumbled. “Staying for dinner? I was planning on making that halloumi pasta James likes.”

 

“Of course, that would be lovely.” Lily put Harry down and he scurried off to the reception where James was fiddling with Sirius’ old record player. “So”—she leant her elbows on the countertop with a knowing smile as Sirius began to rummage through cupboards and pull out ingredients—“Remus, hmm?”

 

“You’re so full of shite, Lils.”

 

“Harry seemed to sense the chemistry.”

 

Sirius laughed. “Harry also thinks chicken nuggets with salad creme are a delicacy.” He reached up for the olive oil and turned the hob on. 

 

“Yes, well. You’re right. Still, maybe you could ask him on a date!”

 

“Who, Remus?” asked Sirius, already shaking his head. “We don’t know each other!”

 

“You just told me the other day you thought he was cute.” Lily rolled her eyes. “Come on, Sirius. Take a chance.”

 

“Let’s focus on getting the shop settled before we try and set me up, okay?”

 

Lily stepped forward, placing a chaste kiss to Sirius’ cheek. “Of course, darling. I’ll go get wine for dinner?”

 

At Sirius’ nod, Lily stepped out of the kitchen, calling to James.

 

“Mummy, I want to go too!”

 

“Of course, Harry. Daddy will stay here and help out Padfoot.”

 

There was commotion by the door as Lily and Harry put their shoes on and left to go to the shops. James had finally picked a record—The Clash’s Combat Rock—and joined Sirius in the kitchen, helping to mince the garlic and chop the red onions. The two danced around each other as they fried the vegetables and cherry tomatoes, in the same synchronisation they’d practiced since boyhood. 

 

Setting the kettle to boil for the pasta, Sirius observed his best friend as he carefully sliced chunks of halloumi cheese and set it to the side. “Do you ever wonder how we got so lucky?” he asked. 

 

James laughed. “Every damn day.” He set the knife aside and stepped back. “It doesn’t seem fair. I have you, Lily, Harry, Mum and Dad, the shop, a brilliant home. What’s not to love?”

 

“Yeah,” replied Sirius thoughtfully. “Lily wants me to ask that guy from the café on a date.”

 

James’ face lit up. “Go on then, Padfoot. It’s been _ages_ since you last had any action.”

 

“Yes, thank you for reminding me,” Sirius said bitterly. “But I guess you’re both right. New place, new shop, new life. Might as well make the most of it.”

 

“You seem hesitant.” James ran his hands under the tap before stretching and looking directly at Sirius again. 

 

Sirius shrugged, occupying himself with frying the halloumi. “I don’t really _need_ a relationship, do I?” Images of Remus flashed through his head, Remus who he’d only seen a handful of times but was already so fascinated by, Remus who had immediately lit up his godson’s world with images of mythical creatures and magic. Oh no, Sirius fancied the bloke.

 

“Ask him out!” said James. “Your expression is telling me everything I need to know. Besides, you’re fit, why would he say no?”

 

Sirius barked out a sharp laugh, shaking his head as he took the cheese off the heat and strained the pasta. “You’re a fucking nuisance, James.”

 

“You love me though.” James gave him a cheeky wink as he nicked a cube of halloumi, popping it into his mouth and letting out a slight moan. “Fuck, this is good.”

 

The front door opening caught both their attention. A call of “Padfoot!” and the thundering of feet came echoing down the hall as Harry ran into the kitchen where Sirius and James were. Sirius swiped up his godson, pressing him into his chest protectively and letting a hand run through his messy black hair. James grinned at them and stepped forward to ruffle both Harry and Sirius’ hair. 

 

“My weird little fucked up family,” he said with a laugh and a wink to Sirius.

 

“James! Language!” called Lily as she entered the kitchen. 

 

The rest of the night carried on much the same way, with a constant stream of swearing, giggling, and of course, drinking. James and Sirius walked out to the off-license after dinner to get another bottle of wine, and by the time the Potters left to catch a cab back home, the three adults were a bit tipsy and Harry was sound asleep in Lily’s arms, snoring like a man twenty times his age. Dinner was a distraction for Sirius, as always. Because that’s what your real family was for—distracting you from whatever intrusive self-depreciative thoughts threatened to ruin your mood. He could always rely on James, Lily, and Harry for that.

 

But as he climbed into his empty bed after cleaning up, he couldn't help the obsessive thoughts he always seemed to get when he reflected longer than ten seconds about the state of his life. He lured himself to sleep that night with images of a man with tawny curls, brown eyes, and long scars. And as he moved through the phases, his breathing becoming shallow and capricious, the man left and was replaced by a shouting, snarling woman with nails sharp as knives who had the potential to ruin everything good there was about Sirius Black’s life.


End file.
